Latest news with #SarahKirbyYung
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Booze until 4 a.m.: Latest last call in Canada coming to downtown Vancouver
Bars, pubs and nightclubs operating in Vancouver's downtown core will be able to extend daily liquor service until 4 a.m., after a unanimous decision from city council Tuesday. But in order to keep the doors open and the booze flowing, individual businesses will have to opt-in and apply for changes to their licences, officials explained. A report from staff recommended changes that would allow so-called 'liquor primary' businesses in the downtown core to extend liquor service until 3 a.m. seven days a week. For businesses outside of the core, the proposal was to allow alcohol service until 3 a.m. on weekends. 'Proposed updates aim to provide more opportunity and flexibility for new and existing businesses, reduce regulatory barriers, bolster local economies and enhance neighbourhood vibrancy by providing more late-night options in the city for dining, hospitality and nightlife for residents and visitors, while considering neighbourhood livability, public safety and health,' the report said. Two bar owners who spoke in support of the motion urged council not to make distinctions based on geography, saying there is a need to create a level playing field and arguing that giving people more places to drink in their neighbourhoods could mitigate some of the risk of drunk driving. ABC Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung proposed extending service for an additional hour in the downtown core to align with provincial regulations which allow bars to stay open until 4 a.m., which is currently allowed a handful of time per venue. 'Keep it simple. Let's enable a vibrant industry across the city. Let's make it easier for businesses to do business,' she said. 'This is about giving businesses a choice.' Kirby-Yung said her amendment was made in the spirit of 'alignment' between provincial and municipal regulations but also acknowledged this would create different rules for businesses in different areas. She maintained that downtown is a distinct area with distinct needs, in part because legitimate businesses need to be given the opportunity to compete with a 'proliferation' of unsanctioned after-hours operations. 'I think that when you give people the ability to be adults and positive spaces for them to be inside, that is a better scenario than turning people out,' she said. 'When you shut (down at) that arbitrary timeline, they're just going literally next door, half a block down the street, and they're going to an illegal after hours that does not have the same sort of safety considerations and the same operating commitments.' COPE Coun. Sean Orr voted in favour of the amendment. 'I just want to say that it's good to see council vote to expand the hours of safe consumption sites,' he said, alluding to how council's concerns over the dangers of unregulated and inadequately supervised places for people to consume alcohol closely resembled the way harm reduction advocates speak about the need for overdose prevention sites. Transit, safety, public health: Issues raised One of the concerns raised about extending liquor service and operating hours at all was that a dearth of late-night public transit would lead to increases in impaired driving and leave workers without a safe and affordable way to get home. The last SkyTrain out of downtown departs around 1 a.m., earlier than the 2 a.m. last call already allowed in the city. Kirby-Yung's amendment also directed the mayor to write to TransLink to urge them to extend SkyTrain operating hours. However, a city spokesperson at the meeting pointed out this option has already been studied and dismissed as 'unfeasible' by the transit authority. In a statement, TransLink said additional funding – which has yet to be approved – will allow for more bus routes to operate 24/7. 'We work closely with municipalities to ensure services continue to meet demand and will remain in conversation with the City of Vancouver as their plans progress, a spokesperson wrote in an email to CTV News. The potential impacts on public safety and increased spending on policing were also raised as potential consequences. 'Street disorder is always an issue,' a representative form the Vancouver Police Department said about the Granville Entertainment District, who added that the number of fights, stabbings, and incidents varies weekend-to-weekend. A conservative estimate given for the policing costs associated with extending liquor service downtown was $125,000. Addressing the specific issue of gender-based violence, Orr put forward an amendment asking staff to report back on how much it would cost to increase funding for Good Night Out Vancouver – a community organization that patrols the streets to prevent and respond to sexual harassment and assault. The amendment passed unanimously. Mark Lysyshyn, deputy chief medical health officer at Vancouver Coastal Health, spoke in opposition to the motion and argued that increasing the availability of alcohol increases the overall risk of alcohol-related harms. 'Alcohol consumption is associated with numerous health risks, including cancer, heart disease, liver disease, injuries, violence, addiction and death,' he told council. 'Alcohol is a significant burden on the health-care system,' Lysyshyn added, saying data shows an increase in hospitalizations, deaths, and injuries over the past 10 years. Late night and early-morning drinking, specifically, were cited as cause for concern. 'The type of drinking that's done in that time frame is more risky, it's more likely to result in problems, and these are particularly problems not only to the person engaging in the drinking, but to other people,' he said. Green Coun. Pete Fry said he supported the plan to extend downtown hours until 4 a.m. reluctantly and asked whether it would be difficult or onerous to reverse course if it proves to be 'more of a burden than it was worth.' City staff said the process for undoing the changes would be relatively straightforward. 'If we see a significant impact, staff can return with bylaw amendments to roll back the hours,' the city's chief licensing officer said.
CTV News
11-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Vancouver explores subdividing laneway homes
The City of Vancouver is looking at opening more avenues to home ownership. On Wednesday, council unanimously approved a motion for staff to explore the idea of allowing the subdivision or stratification of laneway homes. The motion was tabled by ABC councillors Sarah Kirby-Yung and Mike Klassen. Klassen said there are about 6,000 of these kinds of homes in Vancouver. 'It's really a way to look forward on how we actually use land within our residential neighborhoods,' he said. 'Laneway houses are incredibly popular.' Klassen added if the idea is adopted, it could provide greater opportunities for intergenerational living. 'I think it will provide real opportunities for more housing, and more people to get into the market and potentially have a better way for people to downsize,' he said. Industry support According to the motion, titled 'Opening Doors: Expanding Ownership Options for Laneway and Backyard Homes,' while the city has recently allowed stratification and subdivision for multiplex developments, the same opportunity does not currently apply to laneway homes and accessory dwelling units, 'even when these units meet the siting, massing, and design guidelines of the R1-1 policy.' Bryn Davidson, the co-owner of Lanefab Design/Build, said his clients have been requesting this option for years. 'Say you're a family,' he said. 'If you're able to separate these into two strata units, then your kid can get their own mortgage. They can sell the house if they need to when it's time to inherit the the property. It's easier to deal with. So it just makes everything a lot simpler.' 'Financial barriers' Akua Schatz, the board chair of Small Housing B.C. and owner of Smallworks Studios, agreed with Davidson, adding she wished she had this option when her family built one of the first laneway homes in North Vancouver in 2010. 'We were hoping that strata titling would come into place just to help to ease some of the legal and financial barriers that we were facing, trying to create a co-ownership model that worked,' she said. Schatz said Small Housing B.C. conducted a poll on the public's attitudes around this kind of housing, the results of which were published Thursday. 'They found that over 80 per cent of folks are really supportive of this form of housing, and they want to see more options in their communities,' she said. Affordability? Andy Yan, the director of the city program at Simon Fraser University, said if the city endorses this approach, it may not necessarily address affordability. 'I think that part of this, actually, one has to keep an eye on is really some concerns around speculation,' he said. 'Does this create the latest and newest investment vehicle in Vancouver real estate as opposed to homes for families?' The staff report is expected to come back to council in the fall or early next year.
CBC
20-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
At Vancouver city hall, 'abstain' means 'yes'
At Vancouver city hall, 'abstain' means 'yes' 13 hours ago Duration 2:18 Social Sharing Most weeks in local politics, there's debate over whether councillors voted for or against an important motion. But, as CBC Vancouver's municipal affairs reporter Justin McElroy reports, this week in Vancouver, the question was about councillors not voting at all. "It's not always easy to cast votes … but I think that's why we're there, and I think people expect us to make them," said Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung, who has been critical of opposition councillors abstaining from a couple of different votes this week. "Abstentions are not a vociferous voice. You're not taking a position." A councillor who abstained from two of those votes defended the importance of abstentions. But the weird truth of Vancouver city hall is that abstaining is taking a legal position — though not the one the public might expect.
Globe and Mail
04-06-2025
- Politics
- Globe and Mail
Vancouver Mayor, Filipino advocacy group at odds over Lapu Lapu memorial event
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim says he's surprised by criticism of plans for a large memorial event this month to honour victims of the Lapu Lapu festival attack, which a Filipino advocacy group says was arranged without proper consultation. Filipino BC says it wasn't told in advance about a vote approving the event by the city council on Tuesday, and the city should be prioritizing emergency recovery funding for those affected by the April 26 tragedy in which 11 people were killed and dozens hurt. The motion, brought by Coun. Sarah Kirby-Yung, outlines an event called 'Come Together; Vancouver Strong' at Rogers Arena in June, but no specific date has been set. Sim says in a statement Wednesday that his office was surprised by Filipino BC's criticism given what he calls 'ongoing and regular communication' with the organization. He says there was a meeting with Filipino BC on Friday, attended by its executive director, where the memorial event was discussed. Sim says his office has reached out to Filipino BC to seek clarification and reaffirm a shared commitment to ensuring the event is done with the community. Kirby-Yung had told the council meeting the Filipino community had been working with the mayor's office and was comfortable with the event. Remembering the Vancouver attack victims Filipino BC said in its statement issued later Tuesday that 'the timing, tone and format of such an event should be aligned with victims and the communities impacted.' 'While we understand the city's desire to create space for collective mourning and healing, it is critical that this process centres the voices of the families and affected communities,' it said. Kirby-Yung said she was advised by the mayor's office to bring the motion forward, on behalf of B.C. MLA Mable Elmore and that Filipino BC was engaged in the plans. Councillors Peter Fry and Lucy Maloney had questioned whether the Filipino community was aware of the motion, but it ultimately passed unanimously. Elmore – who is of Filipino heritage and was at the Lapu Lapu Festival when the attack took place – issued a statement on Wednesday saying the event that she described as a benefit concert 'is a welcome step toward healing.' 'Mayor Sim, his staff, Filipino BC, and other stakeholders have been present at the table and working together to prepare for 'Come Together: Vancouver Strong,' Elmore said.
